Will the tension on LAC end? India-China ‘decided’ to reduce differences

New Delhi: The 31st meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Cooperation on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC) was held in Beijing on Thursday. The border dispute between India and China in eastern Ladakh has been going on for the last four years. Both the countries are also continuously talking about it. This meeting took place in this sequence. This meeting is also important because it has taken place amid the tension between the two countries for some time. Since 1993, many agreements have been made between the two countries to maintain peace on the border. After 1993, agreements were also made in 1996, 2003 and 2005.

Discussion on the status of LAC

The Indian delegation was led by Joint Secretary (East Asia) Gauranglal Das in this meeting. The Chinese delegation was represented by Hong Liang. Liang is the DG in the Border and Ocean Department in the Chinese Foreign Ministry. The talks between the foreign ministers of the two countries in Astana in July 2024 and the talks of this mechanism last month became the basis for this meeting. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, this conversation between the two countries was ‘constructive’. Both the countries shared views on the status of the LAC from a future perspective, so that mutual differences can be reduced and early solutions to the dispute can be found. Both sides agreed that the two countries will further deepen their contact through military and diplomacy.

What was agreed upon in the meeting?

Along with this, it was also agreed that peace will be maintained in the border areas under the existing bilateral agreements and protocols accepted by both the countries. It was reiterated in the meeting that respecting the LAC and maintaining peace is very important for normalcy in bilateral relations. During this, Gauranglal Das also met the Deputy Minister of the Chinese Foreign Ministry. Earlier, a meeting of this mechanism was held on 31 July.